Male or female

[DeltaCotton12]

i"ve always heard that a female dog is a better hunter because of her lack of testosterone(sp?) She will obey much better.. What experiences do ya"ll have with either? Bella may be 4 weeks old as of right now.

Also this dog has a white spot on its chest, what does significance of this?

[dukbum]

i can tell ya like a few others on here a male is alot more hard headed than a female but i bet there are some females like that also

[Faithful Retrievers]

Alot of people just have a preference. One good thing about my female is that she is better hunting around another dog than my male. Alot of people claim to have luck out of a runt female. I have always got the runt and had good luck. Is it a choc. I have seen alot of that with chocs. Doesn't effect anything, but it would be a discount if I was buying. AKC reads something like flaw and DQ from show, but don't effect putting a duck in its mouth.

[flyntwt]

A good dog is a good dog. I like the females (this is a generalization) because they are more affectionate.... Follow you around and generally want to hang out more. A well bred male can be so business minded he's a pain in the *#!.... and I wouldn't worry about the white spot, as long as the papers are legit.

[msbigdawg1234]

To each his own have both hunt more now with my female ( but we think she is a butch)......males are gona test ur patience more then a female....the white spot is a sign of the st johns waterdog which is the breed that the lab was started from shows up from time to time it is a flaw for show dogs.....use to have a male with a blazin star on the chest yrs ago....he was as good as ya get in a hunting dog till he got out the kennel and a UPS truck ended his seasons.......

[DeltaCotton12]

I'm excited about the possibility of getting a dog. Since my family Golden died 2 years ago I haven't really thought about getting a dog for myself.

The litter is 4 weeks old right now. This is a friend that will cut me a great deal on a puppy plus pick of the litter. I just don't wanna pass this opportunity up.

The only hitch is me still being in college. I'm still not sure how that's gonna play out with her. I'm pretty sure my parents would say no, but i'm 22 years old and about to start my own career. I tried explaining to my girlfriend the bond between man and dog, but she doesn't understand. 21 apts has a no pet policy, so I have to get around that somehow. Not quite sure what to do.

Anyone else get a dog in my situation? What type of bills should I expect from the vet in the first year assuming she stays healthy?

[Drakeshead]

I would wait until you can get a place of your own so you can spend as much time with your dog as you can.

Just my opinion.

[Buckwabit]

I have never owned a Female, but I'm thinking about buying one next. I have friends that hunt with them and they seem like good hunters. Of course the males, like mine are to

[GulfCoast]

I have always had females, and been happy with them. Dogs don't obey, or not obey, because of testosterone, they obey or don't obey because of either a lack of training, or inconsistent training. An alpha female will drive you nuts just like the sterotypical "hard headed male." Females don't have any less drive in my opinion. Folks used to think that, and did not campaign females since they caused problems when they came in heat, but now you are getting female FC/AFC/GHRCH/MNH dogs. A male will tend to be a little bigger (esp taller) much of the time, which can give you a little advantage in the upper level dog games letting the dog see you if (when) you have to handle in heavy cover. Find a well-bred litter and buy whichever puppy you decide you like, male or female, choc, black or whatever, and let the chips fall where they may! You will have a blast.

[Bankermane]

I have always heard that females learn quicker than males but peak out in about 2-3 years as far as learning. Males continue to get better up to 5 years.

[h2o_dog]

Females come in heat twice a year. Males are in heat 365 days a year. But the difference is....a male won't get knocked up by the neighborhood stray and raise a litter of unwanted puppies. I've had males, females, and spayed females...and I still like the the old hard heads best.

[duckter]

I have heard it said before that in general, it costs around $6000 for a dog from the time you purchase until its death. Includes food, vet bills, etc.

[tnducktracker]

my suggestion is to wait until you have finished school and have a job and a house of your own no matter how good the deal is. I know your intentions are good but it's just too difficult to spend enough time to train and work and raise a pup while still in school, studying, and living in a small apt. I know it's possible but the odds are stacked against you. I also it's hard but my advice is to wait until you are out of school before getting a hunting dog and expecting good results. Just my .02

[Roach]

my suggestion is to wait until you have finished school and have a job and a house of your own no matter how good the deal is. I know your intentions are good but it's just too difficult to spend enough time to train and work and raise a pup while still in school, studying, and living in a small apt. I know it's possible but the odds are stacked against you. I also it's hard but my advice is to wait until you are out of school before getting a hunting dog and expecting good results. Just my .02

I agree 100% with this. I am on my 6th lab and if you have not owned one, you don't know what you are getting in to. They are a blast to hunt with if the proper time has been spent training. On the other hand when not hunting, they can do more damage than a D4 dozer! I would never consider owing a Lab pup in an apartment.
Wait till you get your own place and look at your purchase/gift as a major investment, not as a hunting item.

[Deltaquack]

Females come in heat twice a year. Males are in heat 365 days a year. But the difference is....a male won't get knocked up by the neighborhood stray and raise a litter of unwanted puppies. I've had males, females, and spayed females...and I still like the the old hard heads best.

About 10 years ago, our duck dog was female and always went into heat the last half of January which was a PITA. She was great the rest of the time.